** Opal's Hope **

Most recently many of you learned of the loss of one of my feral cats, Opal. I found her hit by a car earlier this week. I've decided to start this page in memory of Opal and to share my fostering journey.

It is Opal's Hope that I can continue doing my best to provide veterinary care for the unwanted and find the homeless ones homes. It's her hope that more felines can have the opportunity for a safe and forever home. Opal had a good life but it was a hard life that ended tragically too soon. With Opal's Hope, I plan to continue helping others so they won't face the same fate that she did and the only way they won't is if we help them. I can't do it alone but I do, do it alone. Join my journey and we can do it together! I have a friend who fosters also and she helps find homes too!

My story - My fostering of cats started back in 2018 simply with a stray female that showed up at my house. I called her PG for Pretty Girl! I fed her. She kept coming back. I trapped her. She was pregnant. She had kittens. I fostered, vaccinated and adopting them out. This was the NoName litter. Unwilling to be socialized PG was spayed, vaccinated and released and she still comes "home" today.

I have personally fostered 32 felines which included 5 separate litters with 18 newborns, the others ranging between 4 weeks and 2 years of age. Initially I had the kittens vaccinated and wormed prior to adoption all on my dime, only hoping their new owners would sterilize them. Most owners I knew personally or were responsible friends of friends that I knew would sterilize the kittens. The local vet clinic I work through offers me a "friends and family" discount but each litter still costs me hundreds of dollars for their first visit. I've had 3 separate litters in the past 6 months and I'm picking up another litter of 6 - 4 week old kittens tomorrow that lost their mother!. Most recently I've started working with a low cost spay/neuter clinic that will alter, vaccinate and microchip for a reasonable cost that I am willing to pay to ensure all are sterilized. Therefore the last 10 have been or will be sterile before or shortly after being adopted out, as will these next 6! Most of that expense has been on me, some or all has been on the adopters. If they ask about re-homing fees I tell them them 1/2 of what I incur with the veterinary service. Some pay the 1/2 and some choose to pay the full price but a good portion is still my expense. If they don't ask, they simply get a free vetted kitten, some ask but most don't. I simply want all of them to be vetted and sterile, and have good homes.

Opals story - In 2022 a stray female that I had never seen before showed up in my back yard with her 6 week old kittens, Opal and her 3 siblings. I had planned to foster, socialize and adopt all of them also but only one became social enough to live inside. The others were unwilling to socialize so they were trapped, vaccinated, sterilized and released back into the woods in my backyard. This mom and litter were my gemstone litter; Jade, Gem, Opal, Onyx and Coal. Only Gem is now living inside; the others live outside and all are provided with warming huts and warm water drinkers in the winter as well as flea medicine in the summer.

There are many other individual TNR stories but over the last few years there was the Junkyard litter, the Harry Potter litter, the Election litter, the Blizzard litter and most recently the Spring litter, and a few single felines as well.

My Mission - Trap Neuter and Release, or Vet Foster and Adopt.

I'm not for profit!

I'm for adopt, don't shop!

I'm for helping families who can't otherwise adopt from a shelter or pay initial altering veterinary services still be able provide a fuzzy kitty a forever home. There are more kittens than there are families who can buy one but there are families who will adopt at a lower cost and provide a loving home. Sometimes the initial veterinary service or adoption fee of $150 is cost prohibitive and prevents good people from owning a pet.

Some say, if they cant afford the adoption fee then they can't afford a pet.

I say, if they can't afford the adoption fee but I can help good people adopt a fully vetted kitten at a minimal fee or free then there is one less homeless kitten in need.

My Vision - My short term vision is to neuter males and spay females before adoption to prevent unplanned pregnancies and the addition of 30+ kittens during each intact females lifetime. My vision is also to provide homes for more felines by making them affordable for families who couldn't otherwise afford one from the local shelter.

My long term vision is to build an outside catio so fosters can enjoy the sunshine and fresh air while waiting for their forever homes rather than waiting in my garage. Had a castle catio existed for Opal she could still be with us today.

My Cause - My cause is one of donations. Donate if you like or simply learn parts of my fostering journey. Your donation will help with current and future veterinary services. Your donation could also go towards a future foster catio! The choice is yours.

It is Opal's Hope that proper care is available for as many as possible and for as long as there is the need. Opal's Hope is others needs. The more we get off the streets the fewer that will have the hard life and same fate as Opal who is now buried in the same location where she was first seen in my backyard.

Thank you all for reading my story, listening to my vision and mission, and donating to my cause! It takes a village!